Former First Lady Michelle was reportedly unable to attend the funeral of former President Jimmy Carter, who recently died at the age of 100. Those familiar with the matter indicate that she had “scheduling conflicts” while on an “extended vacation.” However, all other living former presidents and their wives were in attendance.
Michelle Obama’s spokesperson, Crystal Carson, acknowledged the absence, stating, “Former First Lady Michelle Obama is not in attendance at President Carter’s National Funeral Service. Mrs. Obama sends her thoughts and prayers to the Carter family and everyone who loved and learned from the remarkable former President.”
“I’m told by her advisors that she has scheduling conflicts,” journalist Jeff Zeleney said during a CNN broadcast of the funeral. “She’s still in Hawaii,” he further noted. CNN further indicated that the former first lady’s reason for remaining in Hawaii was for an “extended vacation.” In light of her absence, footage from the event showed Barrack Obama sitting without his wife beside President-elect Donald Trump, where the two could be seen joking about an unknown topic.
In a tribute to Carter shared on the day of his passing, Barrack Obama wrote, “Whenever I had a chance to spend time with President Carter, it was clear that he didn’t just profess these values. He embodied them. And in doing so, he taught all of us what it means to live a life of grace, dignity, justice, and service. In his Nobel acceptance speech, President Carter said, ‘God gives us the capacity for choice. We can choose to alleviate suffering. We can choose to work together for peace.’ He made that choice again and again over the course of his 100 years, and the world is better for it.”
He continued, “Maranatha Baptist Church will be a little quieter on Sundays, but President Carter will never be far away — buried alongside Rosalynn next to a willow tree down the road, his memory calling all of us to heed our better angels. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to the Carter family, and everyone who loved and learned from this remarkable man.”
Trump also shared a statement about Carter’s passing to Truth Social. “I just heard of the news about the passing of President Jimmy Carter. Those of us who have been fortunate to have served as President understand this is a very exclusive club, and only we can relate to the enormous responsibility of leading the Greatest Nation in History,” it read in part.
The president-elect continued, “The challenges Jimmy faced as President came at a pivotal time for our country and he did everything in his power to improve the lives of all Americans. For that, we all owe him a debt of gratitude. Melania and I are thinking warmly of the Carter Family and their loved ones during this difficult time. We urge everyone to keep them in their hearts and prayers.”
Trump said in another statement, “President Jimmy Carter is dead at 100 years of age. While I strongly disagreed with him philosophically and politically, I also realized that he truly loved and respected our Country, and all it stands for. He worked hard to make America a better place, and for that I give him my highest respect. He was a truly good man and, of course, will be greatly missed. He was also very consequential, far more than most Presidents, after he left the Oval Office. Warmest condolences from Melania and I to his wonderful family!”
Watch Trump and Obama chuckle about something at the funeral below:
Featured image credit: Tim Pierce from Berlin, MA, USA, CC BY 2.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0>, via Wikimedia Commons, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Michelle_Obama_(29869565383).jpg
"*" indicates required fields